Hi, happy new year!
I would like to close my year 2013 by making a list of all my purchases during the past year. I use a small memory book for writing down notes about what I've bought, what I think I need in the future, which items proved to be great buys and which did not. I made my first notes to the book in early 2011. Its been so easy to leaf through the pages over and over again to remind myself what I should look for - especially before I go shopping or plan to buy something from the web. Anyways, its time to do the counting!
(I know one is not supposed to include essentials such as tees or underwear, but I do.)
1. t-shirts, Esprit, 3x (replacements)
2. burgundy cashmere knit top, Pringle of Scotland, (replacement)
3. navy linen dress for summer (replacement)
4. brown ballerina shoes for summer (replacement)
5. white capri jeans for summer (whim!)
6. underwear (replacements)
7. black heeled ankle boots, Carmina (replacement)
8. silk pyjamas (replacement)
9. blue, handknit Norwegian wool jumper from a trip to Norway (whim)
10. pink capri trousers for summer (whim!)
11. work clothes for doing dirty stuff at the summer house & striped cotton shirts, 3x
12. black heeled shoes for the city, Carmina (whim)
13. white-navy-beige wool scarf for the winter, Massimo Dutti (whim)
14. beige Keds for the summer -14 (replacement)
15. brown needle corduroy pants (replacement)
16. sunglasses from an optician for driving the car, Dior (necessity)
17. maxi twilly scarf, Hermes (whim, a birthday present to me from me)
not that much stuff, totaling to 1754 euros: 784 € for the replacements, 720 € for the whimsical buys and 250 € for the absolute necessity (sunglasses) which would have cost something anyway. In addition, I got a Ferragamo silk scarf as a present from my beau.
Looking back, I think all of the replacement items were justified and well thought. There was an ok balance between expensive (the cashmere top and ankle boots) and other, less-pricey items (ballerinas, Keds, pyjamas) which were final sale buys. I think the best thing about doing this 4-5 piece wardrobe principle is that when you know what you need, you'll know to buy it when you see it!
Of the things I bought on a whim, the capri trousers were the best finds
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I got them for 15 euros each and wore them A LOT and FOR SERIOUS FUN! The pink pair was the most complimented and a friend named them "The Attitude Trousers"
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The second pair of black shoes I could probably have done without, but I succumbed to a good sale price. The norwegian jumper and the H scarf hurt my wallet, but I honestly hope they will last forever.
So, its time to begin a new page in the note book! Although I did browse through the sales, my first buy for this year was very boring: just new socks, well, 19 pairs of them
My current needs are: more replacement tees, a medium thick knit top with a v-neck, a long end to end cardigan, a DKNY cozy in a dark color, boat neck silk top(s) for the summer, chino type light coloured trousers, some formal shirts for work, underwear, country boots for winter, brown jodhpur boots for the spring and autumn seasons..